“My son was in first grade when I first got involved with UCM (now United Community, or UC). His teacher asked the class what they’d do if they had $100. He said he’d “give all the money to charity.” Not sure if he was serious, I told him that I was giving him $100 and that he could spend it any way he wanted to. He could donate it to UCM or he could spend it on toys – either way would be OK with me. He thought about it for a second or two (the toys were clearly calling out to him) and said that he wanted to give the money to UCM so that other people could have something to eat. That afternoon we headed down to the UCM food pantry on Fordson Road and donated his $100. There was a nice story about it in the Mount Vernon Gazette.

Steve felt pretty good about this, so we decided to volunteer regularly on Fridays. I usually worked on office projects or promotional videos, while Steve preferred to work at the food pantry. After a while he became the resident expert on the system for checking clients in and helping them get their food. At least, he thought he was the expert.

It was a year or so later that I began to have back problems making it hard to stand, so I had to stop volunteering. After back surgery, I went back to work, and between teaching and family life, I didn’t have time to volunteer until this year, when I took a year away from the classroom. While taking a year off from teaching, I decided it was time to come back to UC. Not only has UCM changed its name to UC (I still mix them up), but there’s a nice new office area at the Gerry Hyland Government Center on Route 1. Right now I work two days a week, primarily writing for UC blog articles like this one.

There are many things that keep me coming back to UC. It’s remarkable to see the wide range of ways that UC helps people in our area. I thought I knew what they did, but there are so many ways that they help our neighbors who are in need. It’s inspiring for me to see so many people working so hard to help others.

One of the nicest things about volunteering here is that I work with people who really believe in the mission. I’ve seen both volunteers and staff members give their own time to support our neighbors, whether it’s stocking the food pantry, helping families, or just pitching in wherever it’s needed. I feel like I’m part of a team that works to make the lives of our neighbors better. It’s a good feeling.

Will I keep volunteering at UC? Absolutely. I go back to work in a month or so as a teacher, so I won’t be able to spend as much time volunteering, but I plan on coming back during school holidays to do whatever I can. What I do know is that I plan to keep helping UC, in my own way, to help those who most need it. That’s a good feeling.”